Should Companies Actively Use Positive Discrimination

Should Companies Actively Use Positive Discrimination It was once thought of as the best way to ensure a diverse and inclusive workforce. Jobs and programs aimed just at one specific group to ensure only applicants from those backgrounds would apply and therefore helping companies meet their diversity quotas. The practise has now been made unlawful but there are other means and ways companies can ensure they attract a diverse workforce. Our panel of diversity and inclusion experts tell you positive discrimination isnt the way forward. Natasha Broomfield-Reid Although positive discrimination has been used in the past to address under representation, it can have a negative effect, and can undermine positive previous work that has been carried out regarding diversity and inclusion, especially at senior levels, with the issue of tokenism. I am more of a believer in positive action when an employer takes steps to help or encourage certain groups of people with different needs, or who are disadvantaged to apply for roles as this widens the talent pool and enhances opportunities for skilled applicants who are currently under represented. Natasha Broomfield-Reid, Head of Development at Equal Approach. Caroline Stokes It’s unlawful to actively seek a particular gender for a role. However, I’ve seen companies suggest it would be ‘good to hire a woman to balance the 20 men in the team’, where they can clearly see there is a need to have a more diverse team. Whether they end up hiring a woman for the job is irrelevant, as it’s about finding the best person for the job. Caroline Stokes, Executive Headhunter Coach. Founder of FORWARD. Nicola Crawford An open and transparent diversity policy and practices should be adhered to at all times. Diversity isn’t the tricky bit it’s inclusivity that often poses the problem. Ensuring that all parts of society are reflected in the workforce is important but again it should be the right person for the job. Nicola Crawford, CFIRM, Chair of the Institute of Risk Management. Joanna Abeyie I’d always advocate an inclusive recruitment business which means therefore that you will always have a diverse talent shortlist, as all those who feel they have the relevant skills will apply for those roles. Sometimes, businesses feel they need to positively discriminate in the first instance to allow for real change, especially if in their opinion they feel they are starting from a position of no diversity. However, while I can understand the reason for positively discriminating, it will only work out if the environment in which you have introduced talent is an inclusive, tolerant and one in which celebrates and welcomes difference, otherwise it’s an empty exercise. Joanna Abeyie, Managing Director, Hyden, SThree.  Suki Sandhu Ultimately, the best person for the job should always get hired. To find this person, you need to ensure that you’re selecting candidates from a wide and diverse enough pool so that all diversity groups are given the same opportunity. Suki Sandhu, CEO and founder of  Audeliss. Charlotte Sweeney As a general rule, ‘positive discrimination’ is prohibited in employment. In contrast, ‘positive action’ is permitted and may even be required in certain circumstances. Positive discrimination means treating one person more favourably than another on the ground of aspects such as gender, race, age, marital status or sexual orientation. Limited forms of ‘positive action’ are permitted under all strands of UK discrimination legislation. For example, employers are allowed to offer disadvantaged groups access to facilities for training and to encourage job applications from under-represented groups. Employers can use positive action when selecting between two equally qualified candidates. This enables employers to base their recruitment decisions on, for example, gender or ethnicity where there is under-representation in the workforce of that particular group and they are faced with two or more equally suitable candidates for an available role. Charlotte Sweeney, Managing Director of Charlotte Sweeney Associates Ltd. Sarah Nahm No. The goal of diversity and inclusion is to hire and invest in the best people out there, not to specifically hire more women or minorities. Positive discrimination ultimately has negative effects on all parties; it diminishes the achievements of the women and underrepresented minorities you hire (“did they only hire me because I’m black?”) and can lead to misguided resentment among other employees (“they only hired her because she’s black”). Sarah Nahm, CEO, Lever.

How a Resume Writing Service Can Make a Wire Harness Job Possible

How a Resume Writing Service Can Make a Wire Harness Job PossibleThis is how a resume writing service can help you make the right connections and assemble a job that is tailor made for your specific requirement. In today's modern world where people are always on the move and have less than a certain amount of time to put in their resumes, your resume writing service must be able to get it done in a timely manner and at a competitive price. Most companies or individuals will want to know what the requirements are and how long it will take for the job to be completed. The amount of time it will take for them to receive a response is not an option and should be taken into consideration before making a decision to hire the company to assemble the job.Making the wrong connections and assembling the job to meet these standards may mean that you spend more money and waste a lot of time in your search. In the past, companies have made the wrong connections and charged higher prices for jobs because they thought they could get away with charging more. Therefore, when you see an online resume writing service ask yourself if they are charging more for assembly jobs that may have a higher percentage of sending the job back.Any resume writing service that you choose should be able to create the job for you based on your specific need. They should be able to generate a unique job that no one else has assembled in the past. When you choose a resume writing service that does not have the ability to do this for you, you are wasting your time and money.When you have assembled the job, you will be able to review the requirements from the company. They will give you an estimate of how long it will take to complete the job. This estimate will also include the cost of shipping and handling so you will know exactly how much you will be paying for the job. The higher the estimate the more you should expect to pay.Anassembly wire harness job is very important and should be assembled as quickly as possible. The last thing you want is to find out that the job was not completed in time and you will not be able to get a response. The company should deliver the work on schedule and on budget.When you decide on a resume writing service that assembles jobs in a timely manner, you are able to assemble the job without having to wait for the original start time to be accomplished. By putting together a wire harness job you can make sure the job gets completed in a timely manner and even allow you to add a few hours in if you wish. Since the job is already assembled you do not have to worry about receiving a response as the company will handle all of the communication with the company you hired to assemble the job.You are hiring a company that will take care of everything for you and ship the job to the company. There will be no delays or late shipments, as the company will send the package to the customer or client that you hired to assemble the job. They will have complet ed the job quickly and efficiently and will have the job ready for dispatch as soon as the company is notified.After reviewing the requirements for the job, you can request an estimate for the job and assemble the job that the resume writing service offers. The company will work with you from start to finish including pre-shipment and even pre-package delivery of the finished product.

Fantastic Articles for Women on BlogHer - Classy Career Girl

Fantastic Articles for Women on BlogHer This week, we bring you great article picks from the BlogHer website. From food, health, family to fashion and beauty, youll get real women tips that will help you improve yourself. Here are 10 article picks you should read from the site: 1. How I Said Goodbye to Depression by Switching to the Paleo Diet Read about what a paleo diet is and consider trying it out for yourself. The story of the writer in this article will also explain how this type of diet can help you lower stress levels or eliminate depression. 2.  5 Smart Tips for Dealing with Fussy Eaters An article that will help moms deal with kids who are picky eaters. These tips may serve as guidelines to starting your own smart tips more applicable to your child and his/her personality. 3. 4 Simple Ways to Work in a Workout Workouts can become the least priority for busy women. By following the tips provided in this simple article, you can still have that much-needed workout in between your regular chores. 4. 4 Ways to Control Your Mind and Lose Weight It is not easy to lose weight especially when you really love eating. Heres an article that tells a few ways to control the mind in order to achieve that weight loss. 5. 5 Ways to Stick to Your Exercise Routine How do you stick to your exercise routine despite your daily work weighing in on you? Read this article and find out ways you can keep to your exercise routine. 6. How to Build Your Own Outdoor Playset This article will teach you how you can build your own playset without spending too much on hiring someone to do it for you or buying expensive playsets to install outdoors. 7. Equal Pay Day For Moms? Heres an article that talks about how moms, in particular, can now have equal pay as that of working men. 8. How to Get What Youre Worth: Asking for a Higher Salary Whether we are aware or not, there are still discriminations in companies about how much to pay men and women workers. The bad news is women always gets the lower price than men. So how do you ask for a higher salary if you are a woman? Read this article for insights. 9. Teaching Our Kids to Care About the Real Others Do we teach our children to give value to mankind? If so, dont forget that mankind includes the others. 10. 7 Things Kid-Free People Should Stop Saying Are you single? If so, you may want to read this. It is an article that talks about the real struggle moms have caring for their kids and their personal lives, plus working, if they have jobs, without going off-balance.

Power Surges

Power Surges “Power is like being a lady if you have to tell people you are, you arent.” Margaret Thatcher The original power play manual The authors of Enlightened Office Politics, Michael and Deborah Dobson, write that one of the most important skills in winning political games is understanding the various forms of power and how to use them. “Power” is a word that many of us associate with unpleasant ideas: it makes us think of egocentric politicians and crazy movie villains. Somewhere along the way, power and abuse became linked in our cultural lexicon. But almost everyone has some sort of personal or positional power that they exercise in the office, even if we don’t often call it by name. Here are the common sources of power: The original power play manual Role Power: Your role power comes from your title and function within your company.   This is power that is given to you by others, and as such, can be taken back by them as well (or granted only on paper.)  We’ve all met someone who has a powerful title but no real authority. Role power is fragile for that reason; you could have a title without the implied power that comes with it, or you could be re-assigned, demoted or fired at any moment. A variation of role power is the power that comes with a title or award; this has more staying power because these titles (whether it’s a Ph.D. or a national football title) are understood to be earned, rather than conferred. Respect Power: This is personal power, made up of your reputation, actions, and even your appearance. There have been studies that indicate that your age, fitness level, attractiveness and even your height can make a difference in your earnings and promotions. People also judge you by how you conduct yourself, your seniority (which implies wisdom), your skills, and whether you follow through on what you say (good news if you’re short and hate to exercise.) Rhetoric Power: Command of the language, both written and personal, play a big part in power politics. Articulate people are more persuasive, and superior writing skills are rare enough to be valued highly in the workplace. It’s not about big words and sounding smarter than other people; it’s really about clarity in your message â€" and even being a good listener. Dobson and Dobson also write that humor is a very powerful tool. Humor can ease tension, create emotional connections, and position you as confident and likeable powerful stuff. Resource Power: Dobson and Dobson write: “Everything you want is already owned or controlled by someone else, and that creates a political situation.” Competition for scarce resources creates most of the tension in an office environment, as people compete for headcount, funding, even office location. A former boss of mine used to call this the Golden Rule; “he who has the gold makes the rules.” Like role power, resources are usually the company’s and not yours personally (unless you’re the owner), so this power can move from person to person quickly. Relationship Power: This is power by association, and the real problem with office politics.   If you’re a manager and befuddled by empty flattery (aka brown nosing), this is the problem. Your power is, in part, derived by whom you’re close to. This is one of the most abused power plays, in part because it can be faked (unlike the others, which are verifiable.) People drop names all the time, hoping to imply a close relationship and gain status from the more powerful person. Most people name drop badly and only make themselves look foolish and insecure. Allison Mooney, writing for Details Magazine, writes: “Dropped names are like toupees: Badly done, they are obvious and show poor taste. Carefully deployed, however, they work wonders for your image.” Homework assignment: Review the list of sources above.   Which is your current strength? Is that power given to you, or are you the source? How effectively are you using your power in office interactions?

Proficient in Spanish Reading Writing - How to Become Proficient in Spanish Reading and Writing

Proficient in Spanish Reading Writing - How to Become Proficient in Spanish Reading and WritingTo be able to become proficient in Spanish speaking resume you need to focus on certain things. For starters, you need to be able to learn and comprehend the language of your choice. A good way to go about this is to enroll yourself in a Spanish language course or class that will give you the foundation to learn. Then you can move on to the next step of becoming proficient in the language.The second important part of learning how to become proficient in Spanish speaking resume is to be able to write and speak in the language. When it comes to speaking, try to learn from Spanish-speaking experts who can teach you how to pronounce the language correctly. They should also teach you how to speak it fluently and speak it with confidence. As far as writing is concerned, learn to use idioms and colloquial expressions in order to help you become fluent in the language. By doing this, you are effect ively building the foundation for a well-written resume.You will also need to practice reading and writing Spanish to develop proficiency in the language. It is therefore important that you understand the basics of Spanish. Some things you need to do before you can be proficient in Spanish reading and writing are: read Spanish newspapers, read newspapers in Spanish newspapers, listen to Spanish radio programs on the radio. These help you get accustomed to hearing and reading the language clearly. You can do this by asking your mother tongue-English or any other languages you know.Another important aspect of becoming proficient in Spanish speaking resume is to learn the importance of taking notes and reading carefully. A written resume is a record of all the things you did during the interview, such as your qualifications, skills, work experience, and education. Therefore, before making an interview, you need to make sure that you have a record of all the things you have said and don e during the interview.Make sure that you write down all the answers you receive in the interview as well as the things you had to say during the interview. By doing this, you will be able to know what was said and what was not and will be able to properly prepare for the next interview.Knowing how to speak and how to write in Spanish will help you become proficient in Spanish speaking resume. But to become fluent in Spanish speaking resume, you need to be able to speak and write in the language fluently.There are several factors that you need to consider when learning how to become proficient in Spanish speaking resume. In this article, we will look at some of these factors and help you choose the best courses that will help you achieve the level of proficiency that you need.Before you become proficient in Spanish speaking resume, there are a few factors that you should think about. First and foremost, you need to be able to speak and read Spanish fluently. And, second, you should also be able to write it fluently.

The Growth of Remote Working in a Digital World CareerMetis.com

The Growth of Remote Working in a Digital World The concept of telecommuting has evolved into a popular and more common remote working lifestyle that presents a wide variety of options for professionals interested in making a living on-the-go, or from the comfort of their homes.Technology has empowered our ability to communicate and contribute from far away locations with a high degree of success and the number of professionals interested in taking advantage of remote work is growing.evalThanks to the internet, we now live in a world where instant communication and connectivity making the opportunity to contribute remotely very accessible and as more businesses recognize the demand for remote working options, more of them are offering at least partial remote working days as a company perk.Anyone with a desire to create a remote working lifestyle has plenty of opportunities to do so, and businesses can enable their success if they’re willing to take advantage of certain digital tools that empower remote lifestyles.Mutual Benefits for Both Employers and EmployeesBusinesses should always be looking for impactful ways to save time and money while boosting worker productivity and morale, and remote working seems to address these concerns all at once.One of the key benefits of remote working options is that both businesses and employees can save time and common expenses. With the ability to work from wherever you are and on your own schedule, expenses such as childcare and transportation can be reduced, and businesses can save massive amounts of money on company overhead.Another potential benefit for businesses able to offer remote work to their employees is improved employee retentionsince remote working possibilities have become a desirable and more common perk. There are a number of reasons that people enjoy and appreciate remote work and close to 90 percentof employees report a desire to work partly from home.One of the biggest reasons that employees are drawn to remote work is the ability to travel and have a variety of cultural experiences while still experiencing the benefits of pursuing a full-time career.Remote work can be especially appealing for individuals who may experience ongoing or intermittent medical issues. Remote work allows them to conveniently schedule doctor’s appointments and to manage their disability or illness from the solace of their own home.evalWhile working remotely is appealing for a number of practical and personal reasons, one of the biggest factors businesses should consider is the type of message they’re sending to their employees by allowing them to work from a place of their choosing.Allowing remote work as an employee perk can communicate to your organization that you trust them and that you believe they deserve to have a happy and healthy work-life balance. It can also convey that you want them to be able to pursue the hobbies and aspirations they are passionate about outside of work and that they are skilled, competent and independent enough tha t they do not need to be micromanaged.Allowing remote work can be a powerful way for businesses to show that they truly value their employees and believe in the people that they hire.Big companies are taking steps to incorporate flexible time off and remote work as a part of their employee retention initiativesincluding Netflix who instituted a “flex time off” program. This type of attitude regarding remote work can do wonders for company culture and create a positive impact that both businesses and employees will appreciate which is why more businesses are likely to incorporate this kind of perk into their policies in the future.evalThe complete impact of remote work on company culture is still yet to be explored completely, but the benefits for companies and employees seems to reach far beyond what most people expect to come from the simple choice of allowing your employees to change their working locations at will.Cloud Sharing and Online CommunicationAccess to collaborative projects is part of what makes so many remote working opportunities possible. Through organizational tools such as Asana and Wrike, teams of specialists can contribute to ongoing projects and manage their progress without having to be in the same place.Cloud storage programs such as Google Drive and Dropbox allow for instant sharing and updated work, appropriately lending themselves to remote teams that are working on different schedules. Because these tools provide remote professionals with effective ways to edit and share projects instantaneously, there’s much less of a need for teams to meet in person to transition paperwork. Now teams and their clients can stay in the loop regarding ongoing projects without worrying about access.There are also plenty of online communication tools that make remote working more possible since teams can host all of their communication in one place as well as send important information instantly.Now remote team members and freelancers can communic ate with their teams and clients through remote conferencing and even use screen-sharing programs like Team Viewer and Google Hangouts to walk through processes step-by-step. These tools can play an important role in mitigating the lack of interaction and potential isolation resulting from remote work and many companies are using video conferencing as a way of engaging remote employees in company events.Whenever a business is considering implementing remote working options for their employees, it’s important that they adjust other company policies and communication methods so that both on-site and remote employees receive equal amounts of inclusion and consideration.This way remote employees can make just as much of an impact on a business’s success, with opportunities to take on leadership rolesdespite having less actual face-time with management. As long as businesses take effective measures to involve their remote employees just as much as those in the office, they should be in a good position to recruit more effectively and retain the employees that they already have.Finding Remote Work OnlineNot only has the internet opened up countless possibilities in terms of ongoing projects, but those new to remote working can track down leads on new work and clients by taking advantage of freelancing websites such as SimplyHired and Freelancer.evalThese websites allow professionals to seek new work according to very particular requirements such as time frames, specialties, and desired payâ€"this allows remote workers to pick projects on their own terms and businesses can recruit outside talent effectively without having to pay the cost of hiring a new employee.Many professionals working solely from their computers can also bring in a decent income working remotely whether working in web design, as a freelance reporter or analyzing company data. Data scientists earn a median salary of $112,000and opportunities for web development, which can be done almost complet ely from remote locations, are growing as more businesses seek to connect with their target customers through web and mobile.While remote work can put professionals in a somewhat isolated position, there are still plenty of ways for remote workers to network and connect with new groups. Aside from creating a new profile for a freelancing website that connects specialists with new projects, online social platforms such as Facebook and Linkedin provide easily accessible channels for professionals that are new to the job market with ways to connect and work together.One of the most helpful aspects of Linkedin is that it connects users based on common industries, mutual contacts, and similar interests, so just because you may not be attending the same work functions or seeing the same faces in office doesn’t mean you don’t have a great chance to network and find new job opportunities.Many remote professionals are creating their own websites to show off their work which makes sense f or remote workers with a lot of content to display. This can be one of the most impactful ways to connect with leads, build your online businessand support a lifestyle while you travel. Having a branded website can be an effective way to introduce customers to your work and exemplify your brand and your mission without having to attend meetings with potential clients or conduct phone calls. This can help prevent time wasted by working with an uninterested lead.evalRemote workers can also take advantage of social media platforms as a way of marketing their services and connecting with potential clients. There are more ways than ever to market your business online and new generations actually prefer to get to know a business through online research before attending an in-person meeting. It’s extremely common for Millenials and members of Generation Z to search for businesses using their mobile phones or from their personal computers so professionals hoping to create a reliable remot e lifestyle can save time by focusing on networking using these digital channels.The Pros and Cons of Remote WorkThe jury is still out on the effects of remote working on the workforce, but many businesses are seeing increased job satisfaction and a boost to employee morale as a result of having more remote working opportunities. Employees are also stating less daily stress associated with their roles because of their remote work.The idea that remote workers are less efficient as they face more distractions is turning out to be somewhat of a misconception and businesses that were once wary of encouraging remote work based on the fear that employees would be distracted and a detriment to their current projects should be hopeful based on recent trends.Some of the cons associated with remote working involve a lack of social interaction and isolation. Despite having multiple ways of communicating with their teams and clients, many employees still value the consistency and collaborative environment that working in an office presents, so the success of remote working opportunities will highly depend on your work style and personality. Added freedom and flexibility provides the opportunity for improved employee morale, but it’s important to note that some professionals might miss out on the collaborative nature of consistently working face-to-face with a team.The more common work situation seems to be one that combines both remote working and regular scheduling with office hours. Employees that function better as part of a team working face-to-face might find their work relationships suffering if they’re spending more than half the week working remotely while working one to two days from remote locations doesn’t seem to pose the same negative impact on relationships.Final ThoughtsIf allowing your employees to work remotely seems like it is not a feasible option for your organization, don’t write the idea off too quickly. There are a variety of ways to build u p to making your business more capable of managing remote work schedules.One way to start exploring the idea of remote work is to incorporate a few work-from-home days into the work schedule. Start with testing anywhere from one to four working days a month and incorporate a tool that can help you run analytical data on your employees to test their productivity rates.This will be a good opportunity for your employees to demonstrate their independence and will also help provide you with a better idea of whether or not providing employees with remote work perks is something that benefits the future of your organization.If you are at a place where you are offering employees a combination of mixed office days and remote work days but you are hesitant to make the final leap, consider exploring your options with services like WeWork.WeWork is a real estate company that rents out office spaces to businesses that do not have permanent offices. You can use a resource such as this to help you transition out of your office space and into a fully remote team. Explore your options before deciding to either jump headfirst into the transition or write it off completely.Anyone hoping to develop a lifestyle that allows them to work from distant locations should have a pretty optimistic view of their professional future. With the growing number of online tools and work that can be done solely from a laptop, the number of remote working options should grow in coming years, and professionals interested in securing new projects and collaborating with teams from afar should be in a good position to do so as long as they’re familiar with the opportunities that currently exist thanks to a digital and connected world.

Isnt It Time To Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile

Isnt It Time To Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile Donna Serdulas new book LinkedIn Profile Optimization for Dummies should be on your must-read list. Creating and updating your LinkedIn profile is part personal branding, part strategy and part search engine optimization. Chances are you havent developed all these skillsyet. Donna Serdula is skilled in all those areas, plus she has the expertise gained from updating thousands of LinkedIn profiles. I think you should trust her guidance. Yes, there have been recent changes to LinkedIns user interface and functionality, but most of the advice in Serdulas book isnt impacted by these changes. While you could try and search online for the answers to all your LinkedIn profile questions, that would take too much time. And I absolutely guarantee that even the most advanced users of LinkedIn will take away a few new tricks! Donna graciously sent me a copy and Ive been flipping through and diving in. Here are my thoughts about her book. Usable Layout LinkedIn Profile Optimization for Dummies is organized and laid out clearly. You probably cant do everything you need to do in one sitting. Serdula recognizes this and lays the book out so you can dive in and complete small improvements to your profile and then tackle more later. As much as youll be tempted, I must stress the importance of reading Part 1:  The Strategy Before the Siege, first. You shouldnt embark on changing your LinkedIn profile until you have a plan. Reading the first three chapters will help you identify keywords for your career and details about getting and showing endorsements.  (Endorsements are social proof and one thing you can absolutely do to outshine the competition). In Part 2: Getting Your LinkedIn Profile Started, youll learn exactly how to choose a profile photo, write a great headline and customize your LinkedIn URL. Part 3: Detailing Your Career Trajectory and Creating the Ultimate First Impression  shows you how to add the right information to  every section of your profile, including the summary. Part 4: Rounding Out Your Profile and Adding Finishing Touches is where you find the bells and whistles- small enhancements that give your LinkedIn profile the WOW factor. And in Part 5: The Part of Tens, youll find top 10 lists to help you with your profile- from what not to do to how to network on LinkedIn and more resources to help with your personal branding. Great Nuggets of Advice Insight How many times have you seen people upload their resume into LinkedIn? Enough. Heres what Serdula advises in her book: Do Your Profile Right I see way too many people making bad choices when branding themselves on LinkedIn. Bad profile pictures Ineffective  headlines Bad summary or no summary at all Incomplete profiles No engagement, no personality, dont know how to use LinkedIn   Give As A Gift, If Not For Yourself You can give it as a graduation gift to a college senior, give it to your husband/wife/partner who is desperately looking for a new job, or keep it for yourself and resolve to make the changes to your own profile. Get  LinkedIn Profile Optimization for Dummies (affiliate link) You can learn more about Donna Serdula by visiting her website:  http://www.LinkedIn-Makeover.com following her on LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/todonna/ SPECIAL BONUS TO MY READERS I  gave away a copy of LinkedIn Profile Optimization For Dummies. Thanks to all who entered a chance to win.

Happy 30th, Butch!

Happy 30th, Butch! My little brother is 30 today. While hes been taller than me for about half his life, this is how I always think of him. although this is who hes become. At my wedding in 2008, pic by the talented Kate Leigh Were absolutely complete opposites in practically every way, and it still floors me that two people so different could come from the same two people. But yet weve learned to respect our differences and become as close as, well, um, brother and sister. Im so proud of you, Butch*, that I might just start crying like I did at your Bar Mitzvah. Happy 30th its gonna be a great one. *OK, his name is Brandon, but Butch was his nickname when he was little, and its always stuck. And yes, I thought that Butch was short for Brandon until I was in my 20s.